Wednesday, November 26, 2008

For the past 6 months I have been playing LotR Easterlings, mostly at 700 points in the local store. What I have learned is the following.

1. Force Composition. I believe a balanced force should consist of three parts. A mobile reactive part, typically cavalry. A battleline part consisting of warriors. Both the mobile and the battleline should be led by a hero (for heroic actions) and a standard bearer. The third force should be a relatively immobile force of archers (or war machines). A hero might be helpful to conduct heroic shooting, but a standard bearer is not necessary.

2. Battleline. The battle infantry should be lined up in three lines. The first line should consist of high armored fighters with shield. The models in the first line should be spaced out a bit in order to stretch the flanks further out, but not so far apart that it makes it easy to be ganged up and charged by two models. The second line should be their supporter, which would be spearmen. The third line should consist of the hero, the standard bearer, and a few additional warriors. Cavalry should be lined up in two lines. The first line should be the main, the second should be the hero and the standard bearer.

3. Movement. Frequently it is better for the battle infantry to get charged than to charge, especially if there are sufficient warriors in the third line to react and counter charge. The second line of supporters should be directed to where it is important to win the fight, the unsupported models should shield if outnumbered. Cavalry forces should always consider heroic move to avoid being charged.

4. Heroic Action. The best use of Might point is for heroic action. For Cavalry hero should reserve Might pts for heroic move to avoid being charged. Infantry hero should use Might pts for heroic move to charge and pin down enemy models, usually as support for Cavalry. Missile hero should use Might pts for heroic shooting. Heroic fight should only be used selectively to attempt "sacking the quarterback." By quarterback I mean either the standard bearer, a weak combat hero, or to act against an objective.

Saturday, June 7, 2008

Despite my intent of just sticking with the armies i already have and concentrate on terrain, i have started LotR.But i don't regret it for two main reasons.Firstly, it allows me an opportunity of getting some friends into gaming. Having friends to play with can never be diregarded.Secondly, after skimming the rules, i think it is a better game system than Fantasy Battle. For battles, i think Warmaster does a much better job of representing epic battles.And thirdly (yes, i said "two main reasons" but this is just a minor reason) is that the human armies i have chosen will allow me to use my human warhammer houses. So in a way, it is still about terrain?

The armies i have chosen are as follow. Each will be built to 500-600 pts.1. Easterling2. Rohan (Theoden's Host, but led by Erkenbrand)3? Khand or Lorien4? Lorien or Khand.

Monday, March 31, 2008

I read it all in one day, yesterday. It was a great departure from the other Horus Heresy books because though it is about the Alpha Legion, it was a view of the Alpha Legion from the outside. From this outside perspective, the mysteries of the Alpha Legion remains. Even though a significant fluff/plot twist was introduced, it only increase their mysteries.

Overall, well written and better than any of the other Horus Heresy novels. I give it 8 of 10.

Monday, January 7, 2008

I have decided to make building terrain as my 2008 modeling project. I have started with the warhammer models by GW. While the fit of the pieces seems inadequate (the corners of the buildings do not glue readily at a right angle), there are plenty of left over accessory pieces that can be used for customization and home-made add-ons. Thus far i have build one fortified manor (with a custom roof for the tower), combined two towers to make a small keep, and combined two houses to make a larger one (with another custom roof for the addition). I am contemplating building another tower as a clock tower, and perhaps a fortified house as well. I will try to get pictures tonight to post.

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Last year I built an entire 3k army for GT. This year I think I will play the same army in all my tournament plays. As for building projects, I will focus on terrain. I have the City of Death kit for 40k and the Warhammer building set for Fantasy. I am really looking forward to this year's project. I need to get a digital camera for this.